An article in the ‘Daily Telegraph’ of 8 September claimed that the Pendragon apple was grown in England since the 12th century, but this does not fit the known facts, at least under this name.

The name, ‘Pendragon’, is not recorded in the ‘Oxford English Dictionary’, ‘The Middle English Dictionary, or the ‘English Dialect Dictionary’. Indeed, Pendragon as a personal name is not recorded before Malory (1470-85) in ‘Morte d’Arthur’ . How do they know the apple variety is more than 800 years’ old? The name ‘Pendragon’ for this apple sounds as fake as Arthur’s Hall in the main street of Tintagel.